Hard dried yak or cow milk cheese pieces cooked in mustard oil with dried red chilli and local greens — a preparation from the hill districts of North Bengal (Darjeeling and Kalimpong) that uses the hard dried cheese of the mountain communities.
Ingredients
100 g hard churpi (dried cheese — available at hill market stores and Nepali shops; substitute with very firm paneer cubed and dried in the sun for 2 days or available at specialty stores)
2 cups leafy greens (spinach, mustard greens or any available)
3 tbsp mustard oil
6 garlic cloves — finely sliced
3 dried red chilli
1 tsp ginger paste
1/4 tsp turmeric
salt to taste
spring onions for garnish
Method
Prepare the churpi: Cut hard churpi into small cubes about 1 to 1.5 cm. The cheese is very hard and dense — use a sharp, heavy knife. Each cube will soften slightly during cooking but retains its shape.
Heat mustard oil until smoking: Heat 3 tbsp mustard oil in a wide pan until smoking. Reduce to medium.
Fry the churpi pieces: Add the churpi cubes to the hot oil. Fry stirring for 3 to 4 minutes until the outside of each cube is golden and slightly crispy. The hard dried cheese can handle the high heat. Remove and keep aside.
Add garlic and dried chilli: In the remaining oil add finely sliced garlic. Fry 30 seconds until golden. Add dried red chilli. Stir 15 seconds.
Add ginger and turmeric: Add ginger paste and turmeric. Stir 30 seconds.
Add leafy greens: Add the leafy greens. They will wilt quickly in the hot oil. Stir continuously.
Cook the greens: Cook on medium-high heat for 3 to 4 minutes until the greens are wilted and any released moisture has evaporated.
Return the churpi: Add the fried churpi pieces back to the pan. Stir gently to combine with the greens.
Season: Add salt. Stir. Cook together 2 minutes so the churpi absorbs the mustard oil and garlic flavours.
Serve: Garnish with spring onions. Serve alongside steamed rice.
Note: Hard churpi is the traditional dried cheese of the hill communities of Darjeeling and Kalimpong in North Bengal — made by the Nepali, Lepcha and Tibetan communities of the region from yak or cow milk. The hill districts of North Bengal have a food culture distinct from the plains Bengali tradition — reflecting the Himalayan and Nepali influences of Sikkim and Nepal which border this region. Churpi as a cooking ingredient (rather than just a snack) is specific to this hill belt.